Narrabri Netball Association to host round one games on Saturday

Narrabri Netball Association’s 2022 season will get underway on Saturday with the opening rounds of the junior and senior divisions.

The Bev Burrows Courts hosted a grading day on Saturday, April 30, as the teams braved the cold and rainy conditions for their first hitouts of the year.

They all played round-robin games, which assisted the NNA committee in grading the senior teams and sorting the junior players into teams.

Fifteen senior teams have been split across two divisions this year.

Seven of those are in A-grade, which include Vicious and Delicious, Fever, Tourist Tornadoes, Golfie Grubs, Wee Waa Flames, Not Fast But Furious and Pharmacy Flamingos.

The eight B-grade teams are Win Or Booze, Hot Shots, Blue Rebels, Win Diesel, All Nets, Pretty Poison, Wilga Warriors and The Goats.

The opening round of the A-grade season will see Fever take on Vicious and Delicious, the Tourist Tornadoes go up against Golfie Grubs, and Not Fast But Furious meet the Pharmacy Flamingos. Wee Waa Flames have the bye in the first round.

In B-grade, Hot Shots will challenge Win Or Booze, Blue Rebels meet All Nets, Pretty Poison and Win Diesel go head-to-head, and The Goats take on Wilga Warriors.

The seven senior matches will all get underway at 1.30pm on Saturday.

There will be a new-look finals series contested in the senior divisions in the 2022 season, which will be played across two weeks.

In A-grade, the minor premiers will be rewarded by advancing straight through to the grand final. The other six teams will compete in preliminary final matches in the first week of the finals series, with second to play against seventh, third to take on sixth and fourth and fifth to go head-to-head.

The highest-ranked winner of those three games will challenge the minor premiers in the A-grade decider, and the other two winners will meet in the A reserve final.

In B-grade, all eight teams will play preliminary finals. First will play against eighth, second will challenge seventh, third will take on sixth and fourth will play fifth.

The two top-ranked winners of those games will play in the B-grade grand final and the other two winners will meet in the C-grade grand final.

The losers of the preliminary finals in both grades will be eliminated.

In the junior divisions, six teams will contest the under-11-13 competition and three will play in the under-9/10 competition.

The under-11-13 teams are Narrabri sides Magpies, Giants, Lightning and Swifts, and the Wee Waa duo C and W Firebirds and Namoi Cotton Thunderbirds.

The under-9/10 teams include Wee Waa side Valley Vixens and Narrabri duo The Diamonds and The Roses.

The under-11-13 teams will play a normal six-team season, with games beginning at 11.30am, but the under-9/10 format has changed this year.

Due to a downturn in numbers, the NNA committee said it was forced to think outside the box a little.

“We believe all players will benefit from a development session each week,” an NNA spokesperson said.

“That session will be coordinated by Lorna Gleeson, who holds a current development coaching accreditation.

“She will be assisted by the coaches of the three teams.

“Teams will then be able to practice what they have learnt that day across three short round-robin games after the development session.

“The team having the bye in each timeslot will be able to use that time to further practise the skills they learnt in the development session.”

The skills sessions will begin at 9.30am, then the game times will be 11.05am, 11.30am and 11.55am.

The format of Net Set Go remains unchanged in 2022.

Junior team lists are as follows:

Under-9/10:

The Diamonds – Natalie Anderson, Sophia Chappel, Madeleine Fenton, Ella Fife, Mia-Jayne Harvey, Maggie Lawty, Ebony Lehmann, Kaidence Stanford-Dauth, Molly Winston-Smith.

The Roses – Indiana Clayton, Maddison Connole, Ellani French, Ruby Greentree, Mya Mason, Harla McManus, Darcy Mercer-Knight, Willow Tucker.

Valley Vixens – Bridget Cannings, Hayley Cannings, Sophie Crutcher, Marlee Dewson, Celia Galagher, Emma Gleeson, Marlee Schwager, Hillary Thorne, Quinn Towns.

Under-10-13:

C and W Firebirds – Lillian Avery, Ava Collett, Demi-Renee Cruickshank, Ruby Currey, Emma Dixon, Harper Ferris, Layla Hamilton, Bridie Harris, Sarah Lennon, Lori Thorne.

Namoi Cotton Thunderbirds – Annabelle Avery, Jedda Cochrane, Tara Galagher, Rosie Lennon, Emmelene Moore, Bree Pillar, Kaitlan Schwager, Sophie Slack-Smith, Maecee Smith, William Smith.

Giants – Elsie Bennett, Elsie Campbell, Lexie Fernance, Grace Freeman, Ruby Irwin, Abbey Lilliebridge, Norah Nalder, Annaleise Howe.

Lightning – Elke Collins, Charlee Dickinson, Cadence Dowdell, Amelia Elms, Camilla Lampe, Grace Lennox, Amalie Mercer, Ellie Wilkins.

Magpies – Cadence Anderson, Elsie Barton, Sophie Hartnett, Georgia Herden, Xanthe Kirk, Cully Nairn, Isabel Sunderland, Willa White.

Swifts – Martha Barton, Chelsea Clarke, Mia Greenaway, Sasha Holmes, Gracie Lawty, Lily-May Rapley, Winifred Winston-Smith, Hazel Woolford.